Hustling With Ear Hustle

I’ve talked about podcasts before, and their future as well. So it should probably come as no surprise that I’m currently listening to Ear Hustle, a new podcast from Radiotopia. Ear Hustle explores the life of inmates at the San Quentin prison and what it’s like living there. And it’s not just a documentary taking you through the whole life-in-a-prison-system. The co-host is actually an imate at the prison.

The show is recorded inside the prison and delves into the lives of the people within, real humans like you and me. Most of them are serving sentences of at least two decades, and Ear Hustle provides in-depth details of their time within. There’s only one episode right now, with more to come in the following weeks, but the first episode is just chock full of details without any sugar coating.

The first episode deals with cellmates, or cellies, and how getting the wrong one could land you in trouble. Big trouble. Now, you might think having a brother for a cellie might be a great deal. But it turns out there were brothers in the same prison, who thought it might be a good idea to be in the same 9×4 cell. Turns out, they didn’t really know each other very well and took some time to adjust to each other and be compatible. Now just imagine what it would be to share a cell with a stranger.

While Ear Hustle goes into the lives of prison inmates, one thing I (and lots of others) loved about the podcast is how one of the hosts is an actual inmate at the prison. Most people are tired of the clichéd “NPR-ish white narrator” style that most podcasts have. Not only is Ear Hustle giving a voice to incarcerated people, but also to those of colour.

I guess that’s about it with my thoughts on Ear Hustle. Check the podcast out at their website, or wherever you get your podcasts.

If you’ve somehow managed to reach this point and not fall asleep, consider liking my Facebook page. You won’t find any memes or funny videos, but you will find occasional updates and links to all my posts. And bad jokes.